OPENING REMARKS
Alex: Thank you, Johnny Gilbert. Hello, everyone, and welcome, as we wrap up the week here on "Jeopardy!"
America's rocket pioneer, Robert Goddard, was the correct response to our final yesterday, and none of the players got it.
But Sam, our returning champion, was left with the most money, and that's why he's back today to face Benjamin and Kirk.
Gentlemen, welcome, good luck. Here we go. Categories.

Only a small part of Hanoi's infamous Hoa La prison remains standing today. During the war, inmates such as John McCain gave it this ironic nickname, reflecting the lack of hospitality they found there.

SCORES AT THE FIRST BREAK
Benjamin: $4,000
Sam: $2,200
Kirk: $800

CONTESTANT INTERVIEWS

Alex: Kirk Nelson is from Seattle, Washington. Now, he had a raccoon problem.
Kirk: That's right.
Alex: And you were told different ways to deal with that problem. What are some of the ways, and what, if anything, worked?
Kirk: Well, I heard blasting loud music would help eradicate them, so I did see --
Alex: That just makes them dance.
Kirk: Well, it did, actually. I thought they were leaving, but then I think they brought back more, and I just learned, apparently, they're reggae music fans.
[ laughter ]
Alex: I was right. I was joking, and it worked.

Alex: Benjamin Recchie is from Chicago, Illinois, and his first job out of college --and perhaps my son, who is a senior in college right now, could think about this. Your first job was...
Benjamin: I worked at Yerkes Observatory in Wisconsin, hunting killer asteroids.
Alex: How do you hunt killer asteroids? You spend all day at a telescope?
Benjamin: All night. You take a telescope and you take an image of the same piece of sky over and over again and then you compare and see if anything's moving. If something's moving, that means it's probably moving pretty fast, it's in our solar system --it's probably an asteroid or a comet. Now, I didn't find any killer asteroids. I don't know if that's because I'm just not very good at it, or maybe they're just not out there. I really hope it's the latter.
Alex: Okay, thank you.

Alex: Sam Hopkins is our champion. He has a 1-year-old --boy or girl?
Sam: Boy.
Alex: Boy --who has determined that the best barbecue is what kind?
Sam: Kansas City barbecue.
Alex: And has he determined this because he gets the most sauce all over his face when nibbling on it?
Sam: He is a fan of sauce, but I think the roots of his, you know, taste go back to smelling Kansas City barbecue before he had teeth. He couldn't eat it and we got back to Baltimore from a visit to my parents and he sprouted his first two teeth right then, so he made sure that, next time, he'd get some.
Alex: Okay, chew up that barbecue.

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
THE MOVIE MAP $1000: An Orson Welles classic: "The Lady From ___"

DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
SMALLER THAN TULSA (4/5, including 1 missed Daily Double)
BERRIES (5/5, including 1 correct Daily Double)
WORLD SERIES MVPs BY POSITION (5/5)
ADD AN E (5/5) (Alex: In this next category, you will [*] to come up with your response which will be two different words.)
CODA (5/5)
CHROME (4/5)

FIRST DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Sam snagged the next Daily Double on the 10th clue. Sam had $10,000, Benjamin had $4,200, and Kirk was at $7,800. Sam wagered $5,000.

SMALLER THAN TULSA $2000: In 1530 the Holy Roman Emperor gave it to the order of St. John of Jerusalem as a base against the Turks
(Sam: What is Crete?)

SECOND DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
It was Kirk who snatched up the last Daily Double of the game on the 15th clue. Sam had $5,800, Benjamin had $5,400, and Kirk was at $9,800. Kirk wagered $2,000.

BERRIES $1600: This berry is known as framboos by the Dutch
(Alex: [*], yes. Sounds like the French, framboise.)

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND
CHROME $400: Due to its varied appearance, chromium takes its name from the Greek word for this
(Benjamin: What is rainbow?)
(Kirk: What is spectrum?)

Way to go, Kirk. The first round was pretty bad, not even finishing it, but then Kirk takes command in DJ and nabs the lock by the slimmest of margins. One of Kirk's gets falls the old champ's way and we have a different outcome.

I got FJ, but wasn't 100% certain. The name mentioned sounded Spanish, so I went with DQ.

So I lied, this was actually a pretty good episode. Not quite as many good gets as yesterday, but still many, with some strong betting. I don't have any big quibbles with the questions, either, except for the "dash down" one. Really, just reference Mrs. Dash next time, ok?

Congrats to "This is Kirk!" for the lock, though somewhat assisted by strong work by the guy in the middle there at the end.

I didn't have much trouble with FJ and I found it to be a reasonable question. I figured someone might opt for Wally Scott.

That last clue, I wouldn't have buzzed in. It didn't matter (and wouldn't have anyway assuming everyone wagers properly), but if given a choice between sealing the lock game and at least allowing for the possibility of FJ wagering shenanigans, I'd take my chances. *shrug*

Today's NHOI: 'dash down'.

FJ threw me for a loop. None of the information rang any bells, and I spent a good 25 seconds repeating Antonia to myself, trying to spark even a glimmer of recognition. No dice. In desperation, I made the chivalry -> Don Quixote connection with barely a second to spare. Whatever. If there was a wrong path to follow, I sure sprinted down it this week. What a dismal week.

xxaaaxx wrote:That last clue, I wouldn't have buzzed in. It didn't matter (and wouldn't have anyway assuming everyone wagers properly), but if given a choice between sealing the lock game and at least allowing for the possibility of FJ wagering shenanigans, I'd take my chances. *shrug*

The players don't always have a good sense of what the scores are in the "heat" of the game. The only way to see the scores is to look away from the board, look slightly to your left, and then look up into the lights. You're advised not to look for the scores during the game unless it's a DD (which I, sadly, never had the pleasure) -- and, of course, for your FJ wagering (which is during a break anyway). So, I'm sure that the players who are on the edge of a lock often do not know how under/over that lock-point they are as play occurs -- especially when the last clue(s) come up. So, I say: play 'em all out. But, that's just my opinion.

That last clue, I wouldn't have buzzed in. It didn't matter (and wouldn't have anyway assuming everyone wagers properly), but if given a choice between sealing the lock game and at least allowing for the possibility of FJ wagering shenanigans, I'd take my chances. *shrug*

Are you referring to Benjamin buzzing in on the last clue? That would be assuming you'd even be aware of the exact scores at the time and decide to clam based on the scores. Plus, you are in a buzzer race for the translation of an Italian word with a guy who speaks eleven languages.

But suppose Sam had gotten in and gotten it right (I checked the tape and he seemed to be pushing the buzzer). That would have made the scores.......

Kirk $18,200
Sam $10,600
Benjamin $7,400

Kirk, being a boardie and knowing of all things wagering related, bets $3,001, making his MSBIW score $15,199, thus making it impossible for Benjamin to win.

Scoffed at "World Series by Position." Could've run it with just the years-- and only needed one in each clue, at that!
Another good "sussable" FJ. Not a gimmie but workable if you travel the right path, and I did.

Don Quixote (which I'm used to spelling Don Quijote, which is how it's spelled now in Spanish) was my "just have something down" answer that I came up with at the last second since I couldn't think of any other title knights.

Paucle wrote:Scoffed at "World Series by Position." Could've run it with just the years-- and only needed one in each clue, at that!
Another good "sussable" FJ. Not a gimmie but workable if you travel the right path, and I did.

Nice job Kirk!

Yes, the MVP was an easy run, we didn't even have to puzzle out which outfield spot someone was in.

That last clue, I wouldn't have buzzed in. It didn't matter (and wouldn't have anyway assuming everyone wagers properly), but if given a choice between sealing the lock game and at least allowing for the possibility of FJ wagering shenanigans, I'd take my chances. *shrug*

Are you referring to Benjamin buzzing in on the last clue? That would be assuming you'd even be aware of the exact scores at the time and decide to clam based on the scores. Plus, you are in a buzzer race for the translation of an Italian word with a guy who speaks eleven languages.

But suppose Sam had gotten in and gotten it right (I checked the tape and he seemed to be pushing the buzzer). That would have made the scores.......

Kirk $18,200
Sam $10,600
Benjamin $7,400

Kirk, being a boardie and knowing of all things wagering related, bets $3,001, making his MSBIW score $15,199, thus making it impossible for Benjamin to win.

Had Sam and Ben finished the game tied, who gets the $2,000?

Sam would have gotten it, since he was in second place going into FJ.

Congratulations, Kirk!

I had no idea on FJ. All I could think of was My Antonia, and I knew that wasn't right.

That last clue, I wouldn't have buzzed in. It didn't matter (and wouldn't have anyway assuming everyone wagers properly), but if given a choice between sealing the lock game and at least allowing for the possibility of FJ wagering shenanigans, I'd take my chances. *shrug*

Are you referring to Benjamin buzzing in on the last clue? That would be assuming you'd even be aware of the exact scores at the time and decide to clam based on the scores. Plus, you are in a buzzer race for the translation of an Italian word with a guy who speaks eleven languages.

But suppose Sam had gotten in and gotten it right (I checked the tape and he seemed to be pushing the buzzer). That would have made the scores.......

Kirk $18,200
Sam $10,600
Benjamin $7,400

Kirk, being a boardie and knowing of all things wagering related, bets $3,001, making his MSBIW score $15,199, thus making it impossible for Benjamin to win.

Had Sam and Ben finished the game tied, who gets the $2,000?

I realize it's unlikely, but Kirk might have rung in on the last clue and got it wrong, leaving the door open to Benjamin and Sam. Not that there's time to do the calculating on the fly but...stuff happens.